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Saturday, May 14, 2011

Whales!

Thanks to a tip from my friend Katie, I went out to the westside of San Juan Island late this afternoon where I saw J-Pod. It was a much needed "whale fix", and the weather even cooperated for a brief window of rainless viewing. When I first got out there the whales were many miles offshore, milling, and taking long dives. My patience paid off, however, as it often does with the orcas, when a group of about 8 animals came by about 50 yards offshore. Magical!

I think this is youngster J42 Echo doing the cartwheel:

Included in the group was J2 Granny, who is estimated to be 100 years old this year. She's still going strong:

It was great to see my whale friends! This was a great start to what will hopefully be a whale-filled summer season.

4 comments:

Bet you were doing cartwheels too Monika - I know I would have been! Our cetacean sightings have dried up after a great early spring, probably something to do with this lousy weather weere having to endure...more like March than May Crackin flowers yesterday too btw.

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About Me

I'm a wildlife photographer, nature writer, and marine naturalist. I focus mostly on orcas and birds, but am curious about all things in nature. In 2007 I graduated from Reed College with a degree in biology, where I focused on animal behavior and evolutionary ecology and completed my senior thesis on killer whale bioacoustics. Also in 2007 I published my first book, Orca Encounters: Images of Southern Resident Killer Whales. I'm one of the founding members of the Salish Sea Association of Marine Naturalists (SSAMN). You can always reach me at monika.wieland at gmail.com.

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